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VENTILATED CONTAINER SYSTEM OF TRANSPORTATION Filed Dec. .31, 1948 6Sheets-Sheet l jag/afar m Z 13.

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VENTILATED CONTAINER SYSTEM OF TRANSPORTATION Filed Dec. 31, 1948 6Sheets-Sheet 6 VIII/1111 1144! United States Patent O VENTILATEDCONTAINER SYSTEM OF TRANSPORTATION Ellis W. Test, Hinsdale, IlL,assignor to Pullman-Standard Car Manufacturing Company, Chicago, IlL, acorporation of Delaware Application December 31, 1948, Serial No. 68,6882 Claims. (Cl. 62171) The invention relates to the transportation ofperishable commodities, such as fresh fruits and vegetables, and frozenfoods of various kinds, carried in individual containers open to theatmosphere of the cars transporting them and provided with means toprevent exposure of the contents during transfer of the containers toroad vehicles for delivery to their respective destinations.

The existing method of transporting perishable commodities fromproducing areas to distant consignees is by rail in refrigerator cars,by motor truck, and in refrigerator containers designed for rail androad vehicle transit. Where commodities are transferred in bulk fromrefrigerator cars to road vehicles at terminal points, for furthertransit in warm weather to consignee at a distance from terminals, it isnecessary to carry them in vehicles properly insulated and equipped toprotect the lading from the effects of heat in summer and cold in winterin order that the goods in transit may be delivered to the consignee inthe best possible condition. In the construction of refrige'ratorcontainers currently employed in L. C. L. operations (less than car loadlot service), the containers must be insulated to at least the value ofthe insulation requirements of the standard refrigerator rail caremploying like primary refrigerants and must be fitted each with its owncooling equipment individually serviced to maintain the operatingefiiciency of the units during rail transit and by road vehicle to itsultimate destination. The space devoted to the refrigeratinginstallation in this type of container adds substantially to the overallbulk of the unit which in length may not exceed the width of theordinary freight car adapted for the transportation of L. C. L. units,the container being of such size and weight as to require theinstallation of special handling equipment at terminal points, thusfurther reducing the revenue capacity of these units to an unprofitableminimum. It is the particular province of this invention to overcomethis objection to the use of containers for the shipment of perishablesand to utilize to the full the economies afforded by the use ofcontainers with existing types of refrigerator cars.

The principal object of the invention is to provide for the shipment ofperishable commodities in refrigerator 5 cars by means of individualcontainers adapted to subject their contents to the car atmosphereduring .rail shipment and thereafter to be sealed against furtherexposure of the contents when the containers are removed from the carfor transfer to road vehicles for further transit.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages are attained by themechanisms described in the specification and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, in which Fig. l is a view in perspective showinga refrigerator car with its side doors open to a road vehicle standingby to receive containers with their contents exposed and with a supplyof hoods adapted to cover the containers as they are transferred fromcar to vehicle;

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of a refrigerator car having an icebunker at each end and access doors in the middle and showing in brokenlines the manner of dis- 2 posing one embodiment of a type of containerherein contemplated;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view through the body of the car takenon line 3-3, of Fig. 2, with the roof removed, showing ice bunkers atthe ends of the car and access doors at the middle of the car andindicating in broken lines the placement of containers of the typeherein contemplated between the bunker bulkheads;

Figs. 4, 5 and 6, respectively, show the front, side or rear walls inelevation, and a plan view of the ventilating top wall, of a type ofcontainer suitable for use in the system of transportation hereincontemplated, constructed of aluminum sheets perforated to permitcirculation therethrough and its contents, of the air of therefrigerator car in which the container is carried, the container, inthe embodiment shown, having a floor insulated to supplement other meansdesigned to insure complete protection of the contents during transit bytruck from car to consignee;

Figs. 7 and 8, show respectively, the rear end and a side of thesupporting base frame used in connection with the container embodimentshown in Figs. 7, 8 and 9, having rollers journaled at the rear end ofthe frame and rigidly mounted supporting legs at the opposite or frontend of the frame with the peripheral members crimped between their endsto provide floor clearance for the lifting jack trucks handling thecontainers;

Fig. 9 is an elevational view of a rigid type of container hood made upof top and side wall panels of insulating board with stainless steelsheets bonded to the sides of each panel and stainless steel corner postangles connecting them;

Fig. 10 is a view in plan of the top wall panel of the hood showing therectangular configuration of the hood and the placement of hood liftingloops adjacent the corners of the panel;

Fig. 11 is a horizontal sectional view taken on line 31-31,' of Fig. 29,showing one form of wall panel and connecting corner post assembly;

Fig. 12 is a similar view showing a modified form of wall panel andconnecting corner post assembly;

Fig. 13 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken on line 3333, of Fig.29, showing a channel-shaped wearing member for the bottom edges of theside wall panels of the hood;

7 Fig. 14 is a similar view showing a modified arrangement of the metalsheathing at the bottom edges of the hood wall panels.

Shipments of perishables are moved in refrigerator ears affordingrefrigerating, ventilating, and heating facilities, depending uponweather conditions and character of the commodities transported.Refrigeration of the air in the cars is usually obtained by any one of anumber of ice bunker installations extensively used in this service andcirculation of the air facilitated, if necessary, by the use of fansoperable during car movement. The ice bunkers may be of the overheadtype, not shown, in which the air after chilling moves downwardly at the:sides of the car to the floor and the lading, or the cars may be fittedwith ice bunkers at the ends, as indicated in Figs. 1 and 2. For use inless than car load lot (L. C. L.) service, the car interiors may bedivided into two or more compartments, by means of insulated partitionsarranged transversely of the car and intermediate its ends, with icebunkers disposed upon opposite sides thereof. In the installations shownthe ice bunkers are constructed with bulkheads designed to separate thebunkers from the lading and to permit passage of relatively warmrecirculated air in the upper part of the car over the tops of thebulkheads downwardly through the ice for chilling, thence outwardlybeneath the respective bulkheads and to the lading. in service of thetype noted,

the cars are usually iced to bunker capacity and the supply replenishedat. icing stations enroute.

Certain of the perishables may be shipped in refrigerator cars underweather conditions providing desired temperatures without resorting torefrigeration or use of artificial heat. In this type of service theroof hatches over the ice bunker positions are open during transit andhatch plugs removed to take advantage of whatever cooling is possible byadmitting outside air, while certain other of the commodities mayrequire that the hatches be closed when the outside temperatureapproaches the freezing level before the cars reach their respectivedestinations.

When making shipments of perishables in refrigerator cars during thewinter season or periods of very cold weather at temperatures based onprevailing or anticipated weather conditions, precautions are taken toprevent damage to the lading by freezing. For this purpose, varioussystems of heating have been established whereby the temperature of thelading is effectively maintained by the circulation of warm air fromheaters on the car. Such heaters may be in the form of burnerscustomarily placed upon the gratings in the ice bunkers Where they areaccessible for servicing without the attendant having to enter theloading space of the car, or heaters may be of the built-in type mountedoutside the car in a receptacle beneath the floor and thermostaticallycontrolled to maintain inside air at a uniform minimum temperature.Circulation of the heated air, as in the case of air chilled by ice inthe bunkers in refrigerating service, may also be facilitated by the useof fans operable during car movement, when required, depending upon thenature of the lading.

In the drawings, represents a railroad refrigerator car of a typeadapted to the container system of transportation herein contemplated,in position for loading or unloading a road vehicle 11 and equipped withthe usual roof hatchways 12 providing access to the ice bunkers 13 atthe ends of the car, as indicated in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, or intermediatethe car ends, if desired. Access to the lading compartment 15 of a carwith end bunkers may be had through doors 16 arranged upon oppositesides of the car. The cars are equipped with the customary floor rackspivotally mounted on hinge brackets at the car sides. In the practice ofthe invention, the floor racks are raised against the adjacent car wallsto provide room between them for the accommodation of containerssupported upon the car floor and disposed in pairs across the car.

The containers are loaded upon the car and unloaded through dooropenings 27 and separated from the ice bunkers 13 by the bulkheads 26which also function to prevent unauthorized entry to the lading spacethrough the hatchways 12. With the exception of certain types ofcontainers hereinafter noted, those employed in the service hereincontemplated, are fitted each with a chassis base, preferably of thetype best shown in Figs. 7 and 8, wherein is provided a pair of rollers31 at one end of the base frame 32 journaled upon individual shafts 33fixed against rotation in framing members 34 forming roller pockets 35at that position, and fixed supporting legs 36 rigidly connectingadjacent side and end framing members at the opposite end of the frame,as indicated in Fig. 8, Thus equipped, with a chassis base fitted eachwith pairs of supporting legs and rollers, the containers are heldraised from the floor to permit unimpeded circulation of the air in thecar about the containers.

To facilitate handling of the containers in loading, unloading andplacement operations, the base angle member at the stationary leg end ofthe base framing 32 is formed with its depending flange portion 37deflected inwardly to provide a raising jack-engaging portion 38 toaccommodate a roller-mounted swiveling jack of the type commonly used infreight handling service. In the placement of the containers on thecars, the containers are moved to position by jacking up the leg endthereof and guiding them along on the rollers. The containers then wouldbe disposed with their roller ends toward the ends of the car, as shownin Fig. 2, except that the pair of containers at the door openings wouldbe positioned with their rollers directed transversely of the car, asindicated.

The types of refrigerator cars and methods of refrigeration used aredependent upon the particular freight classification of the contents ofthe containers to be carried, which obviously may be of a characterwholly foreign to perishables in food categories, though requiring thefacilities and advantages afforded by transportation of the goods inrefrigerator cars, requiring exposure to air in compartments havingproper heat exchange with the prime refrigerant in the bunkers. Othercommodities of a perishable nature, such as packing house and dairyproducts, frozen fruits and vegetables, poultry, etc., requiringrefrigeration at below freezing temperatures, may be carried incontainers in refrigerator cars having compartments equipped to provideDry ice refrigeration to keep a fairly equable concentration of CO2 inthe compartment to maintain a constant cold surface area and a rate ofevaporation which will be uniform and controlled and suitable for thecontents of the containers in transit, or salt may be added to the waterice in the bunkers to effect the desired below freezing temperatures forcommodities of this nature in situations where the refrigerator carsavailable are not equipped to provide Dry Ice refrigeration.

In accordance with the invention, the containers 30 may be constructedwith body panel portions fabricated of foraminous plates as depicted inFigs. 4-, 5 and 6. The container illustrated in Fig. 4, is made up withits wall panels 50 provided with perforations 49 designed to expose thecontents of the container to the air in the car during transit. Theperforations extend preferably throughout the area of the panels and aresufficient as to size and number to permit circulation therethrough ofthe ambient air. In the embodiment shown, the body is of aluminum forlightness and the perforations account for the removal of about onethird of the metal in the panel areas resulting in a further reductionin the weight of the container.

As shown, the container body may be formed of plates having integralconnecting flange portions 48 on one of the side wall panels 50, andcontiguous front and rear wall panels having connecting flanges 47secured to the side wall, the opposite edges of said front and rear wallpanels having flanges 46 offset inwardly to form recessed door abutmentflanges for door 44 pivotally supported by hinges 43 and giving accessto the container. As indicated in Fig. 7, the door 44 is arranged to lieflush with the container side and held closed by latch 41 with lock seal42. The side wall panel portion 51 below the door 44 extends downwardlyfor attachment to the chassis frame 32 and terminating with its upperedge at the lower ends of the offset flanges 46 on the front and rear,wall panels 54). Said front and rear panels at edges below theirrespective offset door abutment flange portions 46 are secured to panel51 by side flanges S2, and the panel 51 to said front and rear panels byside flanges 53, all of said panels being connected together and to saidchassis frame, as best shown in Figs. 8 and 9.

The container is provided with a top panel section 54 having also theapertures 49 for ventilation purposes. The panel is pan shaped to fitover the upper edges of the body wall panels and secured thereto bymeans of the perimeter flanges 55 adapted to maintain said panels inrectangular relationship, as best shown in Fig. 6. However, the baseportion of the container is insulated to prevent the circulation of airtherethrough for a purpose hereinafter to appear, and incorporates thechassis frame 32 to which the container body is secured, as beforeoutlined. Upon this frame is placed the insulation unit preferablycomprising, in the embodiment indicated, a base layer 56, of plywood orthe like, an upper course of floor boards 57 spaced from the bottomboard 56 by the wood furring strips 58, and enclosing a filler ofinsulating material 59, held in position by the cleats 60 at anintermediate point, and cleats 61 adjacent the furring strips 58, asbest shown in Figs. 4 and 5. The insulation unit thus constructed,renders the base of the container impervious to the passage of air.

in rail transit, the contents of containers built as described, will beexposed to the action of the air circulating in the car, with or withoutrefrigeration, depending upon the character of the lading, andconditions attending the shipment at the point and time of loading. Onthe other hand, if the perishables are delivered in volume unconfined atthe terminal for shipment after having been exposed to temperaturesdetrimental to the preservation of the product, they too, upon loading,would be subjected to the air in the car at temperatures controlledproperly to protect them from deterioration during the period requiredto carry them to unloading points enroute, but destined to undergo theadditional hazard of further undesirable exposure of the products whentransferred, perhaps in chilled condition, to road vehicles fortransportation from terminal to consignee in outside temperaturesunsuited to the maintenance of the lading in proper condition forconsumption unless the vehicle itself be specially equipped to protectthe lading from the weather. Conversely, the same hazard would attendthe transfer of such goods from cold storage, warehouse or field by roadvehicle to the point of shipment by rail, unless some provision isotherwise made to protect the perishables from exposure to the air attemperatures injurious to the lading.

Although fleets of such vehicles are currently in operation by largeshippers of perishable commodities, they are not at all times availableto the individual producer or shipper since ownership of an adequatenumber of such vehicles would entail an unduly large capital investmentout of all proportion to his needs, and rendering the operation andmaintenance of such equipment prohibitive for the limited requirementsof the small shipper. In order to insure more economical and abundantmeans for utilizing existing road vehicle equipment, open type orclosed, for the transportation of goods to and from the railroadterminal in containers without exposing the contents to the atmosphereand to prevent the infiltration of outside air to containers of the typeherein contemplated, the containers are shielded and their contentsprotected by complemental means in the form of hoods, made impervious tothe passage of air and providing insulation properties against heattransmission, and adapted to fit over the body of the container to coverthe ventilating perforations.

Since only the base of the container body is impervious to the passageof air and transmission of heat, the hood will function to supplementthe base portion to seal in .f;

the container air at temperatures approximating that of the contents ofthe container attained during transit by rail and to insulate thecontents against an abrupt variation in temperature when unloaded fromthe car. Thus applied, the hood will function to retard any appreciablechange of temperature in the contents of the container and preventdeterioration thereof during the period of transportation by truck fordelivery to the consignee, or conversely, as will be obvious, by truckfrom producers warehouse to railroad terminal where the hood will beremoved from the container before loading upon the car so that thecontents may be exposed to the air of the car during rail transit.

The containers described may be shielded by insulating hoods of therigid type, as shown in Figs. 9 to 14, where facilities for handlingthem, are available. Because of the weight and bulk of such hoods,provision for lifting them from or mounting them upon a container wouldtake the form of a crane or other load lifting equipment, and includehoisting loops secured Ctr 6 to top panel 139 at the corners of thehood, as indicated in Figs. 9 and 10, preferably by welding. The hood ofthe instant embodiment comprises a plurality of side wall panels141 madeup of a thickness of insulating board of plywood, or the like, and innerand outer sheets of metal 142 and 143, preferably stainless steed,bonded to the insulating board upon its opposite faces and about itsedges to prevent the entry of moisture to the boards to avoid possibledistortion of the panel from that cause. The panels 141 areinterconnected by means of corner post angles 144 of a standard rolledsection, preferably of stainless steel, as shown in Fig. 11, or bentplate angles 145, also preferably of stainless steel, as shown in Fig.12. The panel outer sheets 143 are flanged about the panel edges asshown at 146, and the inner sheets 142 have their edge flanges 147overlapping flanges 146 and soldered, as indicated at 148 to provideair-tight and water proof seals at the joints. The panels are assembledwith their vertical edges disposed in the relationship shown in Figs. 11and 12, with the soldered flange 147 of one panel in abutting engagementwith the inner sheet 142 of the contiguous panel, and rigidly held byadjacent corner post angles 144 or 145, connected to the outer sheets143 of the panels by are welds 149 at the flanges of the respectiveangles.

The upper panel 139 of the hood is framed by peripheral angle members150 connected at the corners of the frame by mitered joints 151,preferably by welding, the frame being proportioned to permit itsdepending flanges 152 to slidably engage the flanges of the corner postsand be connected thereto further to preserve the rectangularconfiguration of the hood. Similarly, the lower portion of the hood isheld from distortion and protected from damage by edge members 153 ofgeneral U shape straddling the edges of the respective side wall panels141 with their inside and outside flanges 154 and 155 secured,respectively, to the inside sheathing 142 of the panels, and to outsidesheathing 143, preferably by arc welding as indicated at 156, in Fig.13. It may be that the protection afforded by the U-shaped wearingpieces 153 may be dispensed with where it is found that the steelsheathing plates 142 and 143 with the encased board of plywood, providesufiicient strength and rigidity to the panels to prevent distortion inthat part of the hood, in which event the outer sheathing plates 143 mayterminate at the ends of the respective panels and the inside sheathing142 extended to told about the panel ends, thence upwardly over thelower edge of the outer sheathing plates 143 by flanges 157 and securedby soldering at 148, as shown in Fig. 14. The hood of this embodimentmay be applied to or removed from the container with equal facilitybecause of the unobstructed metallic interior wall surfaces inherent inthe hood structure and is impervious to the transmission of heat. Inoperation, the hood rests with its upper panel 139 upon the top of thecontainer, and its side walls 141 extending downwardly to completelyenvelop the ventilating panels of the container to protect its contents.In Fig. 1, there are shown insulating hoods 64 carried in the roadvehicle 11. These hoods are collapsible, being generally of bellowsconstruction so that they may be extended to enclose the containers inuse and collapsed to small compass for storage or transport.

What is claimed is:

1. For use in a system of container transportation in railwayrefrigerator cars with containers constructed to expose the contentsthereof to the temperature of the air of the car and operative toenclose the container to insulate the contents from outside temperaturesduring transfer of the container from the car to destination, aprotective hood alfording a rigid structure having metallic framingmembers marginally enclosing an insulating panel forming the top wall ofthe hood adapted to rest upon the upper wall of the container, dependingside wall framing members secured to said top wall framing providingcorner post members for the hood structure and insulating side wallpanels connecting said corner posts, and a lower marginal rigidifyingloop member securing the lower ends of said posts and wall panels.

2. A method of maintaining lading in refrigerated condition duringtransportation thereof, which comprises disposing lading in a ventilatedpilferage-preventing container having a heat-insulating base, conveyingthe container with the lading therein to a point en route in arefrigerated vehicle while refrigerating the lading by subjection to thetemperature of the atmosphere of said vehicle, disposing aheat-insulating hood on said base over the laden container and therefrigerated vehicle atmosphere adjacent thereto at said point,transferring to an unrefrigerated vehicle the lading in the containerand refrigerating atmosphere enclosed by the hood and base forconveyance from said point, and maintaining the lading underrefrigeration by said atmosphere in the hood and base while conveyingthe lading in the unrefrigcrated vehicle.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTSDunning Sept. 19, 1871 Willits Nov. 5, 1889 Bullock Nov. 7, 1893 KappelMay 31, 1921 Laacke July 1, 1930 De Andia Feb. 2, 1932 Grimes Dec. 20,1932 Crawford Mar. 6, 1934 Williamson May 31, 1938 Higgins Aug. 3. 1943Johnston Dec. 14, 1943 Hill Nov. 9, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS Great BritainJuly 12, 1923 Italy Oct. 26, 1929 Great Britain Aug. 27, 1936

